Music Jazz

1) Began in 1935
2) Generally, it was music for dancers.
3) Played and performed in larger ballrooms and concert halls.
4) Large rooms needed big ensembles to be able to fill the halls with sound.
5) The need for written arrangement increases, as dances are made to be familiar with the
songs. Dances such as the Jitterbug, Foxtrot, made arrangers
consider the need for familiar song titles people could recognize.
6) Saxophone becomes the leading solo instrument in this era.
7) Banjo becomes an outdated sound, as the rhythm section is replaced with Bass, Piano and Drums. This leads to a bettert “swing” feel.
8) Instrumentalists must have a high level of music reading because of high demand for this. This made swing musicians more technically trained.
9) Even though the Big-band era being associated with the Swing era, the soloists continue
to master and perfect improvisation at higher standards.
10) There were many great bands in this period, the greatest Jazz groups, who
focused on improvisation were probably the Basie and Ellington Bands. Benny
Goodman’s band was also one of the great ensemble bands.

Bebop

1) Emerged in the 40’s and 50’s
2) Complex and unpredictable
3) Small ensembles consisting of 4 to 6 players
4) Small ensemble allowed for more solo opportunities which was unheard of in big band music.
5) Bebop musicians interacted with one another a lot for improvisations, making bebop bands intimate
6) This type of jazz has a combination of irregular phrasing and a walking bass line.
7) Bebop is quicker than other forms of jazz.
8) Complex chord progressions and Melodies
9) Bebop is better to be listened to rather than dance to. Trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie, alto saxophonist Charlie Parker, drummer Max Roach and pianist Thelonious Monk were among the original developers of this new style.
10) Bebop musicians wanted to break off from common fashion so they wore hats and sunglasses.